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WE REPORT, YOU SCRATCH YOUR HEAD. These are three very odd paragraphs from The Washington Post:
A recent analysis by the Congressional Budget Office concluded that the program would require about $14 billion in new money over five years -- on top of the current $5 billion in annual funding -- merely to keep covering the same number of children, in part because of rising health-care costs. Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt, accompanying Bush yesterday, said: "We disagree with that number."In the 15-minute interview, Bush also rejected the charges by former surgeon general Richard H. Carmona that the administration's political appointees routinely rewrote his speeches, blocked public health reports for political reasons and screened his travel."I can't speak to some of the complaints the surgeon general made," Bush said. ". . . He worked energetically in his job. And, obviously, at some point in time, he became very disgruntled and spoke out about it. But ours is an administration that attracts very smart, capable people. I'm very interested in their points of view, and I expect people to speak out. I also have my own points of view and feel very strongly about a lot of issues."Some unanswered questions: First, why does the administration disagree with the CBO's number? Is there any legitimacy to their complaint, or is it simple crud tossed at the reporter to make this look like a factual, rather than ideological, dispute? The CBO, which isn't known for making up numbers and whose data is routinely reported by the Washington Post, deserves either a defense or to be held accountable. Serious questions about their credibility shouldn't just be allowed to float around at the end of paragraphs.Second, did Bush actually dispute Surgeon General Carmona's claims? It seems to me that he first removed himself from commenting on them ("I can't speak to some of the complaints...") and then made a lot of unrelated points, including the hilarious kicker, "I also have my own points of view and feel very strongly about a lot of issues." Given that Carmona had specific grievances about the politicization of research and science, for Bush to dispute those claims would require him to say they're not true, and possibly explain why they're wrong. Seeming emotionally displeased with their existence is not the same thing.--Ezra Klein
